Discovering a Therapeutic wavelength of light - the Science.

In order to understand the scientific background leading up to the discovery of the Restorelite therapeutic waveband of light it is necessary to have a very basic understanding of the physics and biology of light and it's interactions with the environment. You might find this either fascinating or boring but nonetheless if you are interested to know how this waveband was discovered read on…

In lay terms we interpret the term "light" as the light, which fills our visual perceptions; this is the electromagnetic radiation to which the visual pigments within our retina have adapted through evolution. The "light" within our visual spectrum is in actual fact only a very small part of the solar radiation, which bathes our environment. We find it difficult to understand that we are bathed in solar radiation which we cannot see unless we look at examples; in bright sunshine we appreciate superficial heat which is the result of the absorption by surface tissues of predominantly infrared light. At the same time ultra violet light is being absorbed by the skin to eventually cause sunburn if the exposure is for too long (not always possible in the UK), Neither of these wavebands of light are visible to the human eye.

What we need to do now is to go one stage further and look at the nature of the sunlight, which arrives on the earth’s surface, and to compare it with the wavebands of light to which plant and animal cells have adapted throughout millions of years of evolution.

Sunlight is the prime energy source of the planet, without sunlight life would be impossible and indeed life would never have commenced. When sunlight is absorbed at the earth's surface the energy released causes the temperature to rise; this heat ensures that water can exist it's fluid state and as we all know water is an essential requirement for life. In addition to it's thermal effect sunlight energy has been harnessed by cells adapting through evolution to enable photochemical reactions occur.

It might make it easier to understand if we just take one example of a photobiological reaction and what better example is there than photosynthesis? Within the cells of plant leaves there exists a pigment called chlorophyl, which absorbs solar radiation that we appreciate as blue and yellow light. In doing so energy is released which is harnessed to assist in the chemical reaction whereby carbon dioxide and water are combined to create oxygen and carbohydrate. This is yet another way in which the sun is responsible for life on the planet; sustaining a source of oxygen by recycling carbon dioxide.

Let us now look at the nature of the sunlight arriving at the surface of the planet. We are fortunate that sunlight is filtered by the earth's atmosphere, if this were not the case then it is doubtful that our planet could support life forms; cosmic rays, which contain enormous amounts of energy, would destroy biological life forms. Another example which is quite topical is knowledge that the ozone layer is responsible for filtering out ultraviolet "c" radiation. Ultraviolet radiation is short wavelength and consequently high energy light that is toxic to cells causing changes to nucleus components. This brings us to the conclusion of our education with the knowledge that short wavelength radiation contains high energy values compared to long wavelengths. Generally we can imagine short wavelength radiation to be predominantly harmful to cells and tissues whilst long wavelength radiation is more user friendly with energy levels to which cells have been able to adapt to beneficial effect. The cut-off between short and long is approximately 400nm, which is the point in the solar radiation spectrum between ultraviolet light and "visible" blue light.

We should now have a sufficient understanding of light and photobiology to be able to appreciate how evolution has enabled cells to harness available light energy and how this might explain the affectivity of the Restorelite waveband.

Our initial research was to investigate the hypothesis that within the infrared spectrum was a narrow waveband of light responsible for infrared's known therapeutic effects. Broad spectrum infrared is known to alleviate musculo-skeletal aches and pains and to enhance wound healing. In addition physiotherapists have in the past used infrared light as an anecdote to over exposure to ultraviolet light. None of these effects have hitherto been explained scientifically which has led to the popular opinion that infrared treatment represents alternative medicine and led to cynicism amongst doctors that light within the infrared spectrum can have bone-fide effects explained by bone-fide science.

We used cold sores (herpes labialis) as a clinical model to study the effect of different wavelengths of infrared light on healing time. Cold sores are known to be activated by ultraviolet light and are an easy superficial infection to study without having to resort to expensive laboratory experiments or animal testing. After treating more than 400 volunteers with cold sores it became apparent that the waveband, which was most effective, was likely to be between 1000nm and 1100nm.

The turning point in our research was trying to find a scientific reason why light between these wavelengths should have a beneficial photo-biological effect to reduce cold sore healing time. With the help of Durham University we were unable to identify an absorbing pigment in skin within this range. It was at this point that we looked at the very basics of the equation; what were the principal factors that determined the evolutionary processes that decided the wavelengths to which initially primitive cells and subsequently complicated plants and animals had adapted throughout millions of years of evolution? We thought about the conditions that existed at the start of the development of life on the primitive planet. The ingredients for life forms to develop included basic elements, carbon for example, together with sunlight and water. What was the nature of sunlight? It would have certainly been filtered by the atmosphere of the planet at the time saturated with water molecules.

Again with the help of Durham University we looked at the light transmission spectrum of pure water; this identified a peak transmission of radiation at 1072nm which was almost perfect for our predicted effective waveband!

A subsequent trial showed that one 5-minute application of a non-thermal amount of narrow waveband light centred on 1072nm reduced cold sore healing time by half compared to aciclovir. This was published in The Journal of Clinical and Experimental Dermatology in 2001.

We can now compare sunlight filtered by water with the wavebands of light to which plant and animal cells have adapted.

Looking at the graph we can see how water transmits virtually all of the light within the ultraviolet and visual spectrum wavelengths. Within most of the infrared wavelengths water acts as a barrier to light apart from a peak transparency at 1072nm and a smaller optical window at 1280nm. If we compare this transmission spectrum with the known and recognised wavelengths at which photobiological reactions occur we can see quite clearly that living cells have adapted by evolution to light transmitted by water.

We will now look at the ways whereby humans in particular have adapted to their sunlight environment; this particularly involves looking at skin which is the main interface with light, apart from our eyes, which have adapted so beautifully to light in the visual spectrum.

Skin has adapted as follows; it absorbs ultraviolet acting as a barrier to prevent these wavelengths from reaching deeper tissues. In doing so it suffers the consequences of ultraviolet trauma which includes photo-ageing, sunburn and the development of melanoma and skin cancers.

It selectively allows light between 600nm and 1300nm to penetrate through to deeper tissues. This is known as the optical window of skin.

There is nothing "hit or miss" about these adaptations which have occurred throughout millions of years of evolution. Let us pretend that we are standing outside on a sunny day with very few clothes on! How is our body coping with the solar radiation?

300 nm to 400nm ultraviolet absorbed by skin

400nm to 600nm visual spectrum absorbed by skin. Retinal pigments adapted to see the environment

600nm to 1300nm near infrared light energy absorbed into deep tissues through the optical window of skin

1300nm and beyond into the infrared light is absorbed by the skin. If the quantity of light is sufficient then it will be felt as an increase in temperature - the "warmth" of sunshine.

The graph shows transmission spectrum of water compared to the optical window of skin. It is only logical to conclude that the optical window of skin represents an evolutionary adaptation to light which is beneficial. We can see that 1072nm lies towards the centre of this optical window and so it is logical to conclude that this particular wavelength or narrow waveband is likely to have a beneficial photobiological effect.

Our experiments with cold sore healing proved conclusively that this narrow waveband of invisible light centred at 1072nm has a significant therapeutic effect. We celebrated the discovery of a new therapeutic technology but we did not rest on our laurels! It became obvious that in order to convince a sceptical medical world we would have to attempt to verify our findings in a scientific laboratory environment with the hope that we might at the same time begin to provide an explanation for the mechanism of the effect.

Firstly we looked at the pathological processes in action during a cold sore infection. Cold sores are the result of a chronic ie. permanent, infection of the nerve supplying that area of skin. The herpes virus travels down the nerve and trickles into the surrounding area fairly constantly. Under normal circumstances the virus is mopped up by the local immune system ensuring that a cold sore does not appear. If the local immunity is compromised then the virus is allowed to replicate and a cold sore appears. We know that ultraviolet light has the effect of reducing both local and generalised immunity and can therefore imagine that the effect of 1072nm light is to enhance immunity to improve healing. Searching the literature confirmed that there was no direct effect of light on the herpes virus.

We chose to investigate the effects of different wavebands of light on human lymphocytes(white blood cells responsible for immunity). This work was undertaken independently by a postgraduate student at a north-east university and has confirmed our ideas that the immune system benefits from radiation with light centred at 1072nm. The results have been written as a scientific paper and have been submitted for publication. Not only did 1072nm light enhance lymphocyte survival but it also protected the cells against the adverse effects of ultraviolet light.

The amazing discovery of improved skin quality and wrinkle reduction were made after a chance remark by a patient who had used our cold sore treatment device frequently in one area and had noticed a reduction in wrinkles and smoother skin in that small area. We followed this up by enrolling volunteers who were prepared to use a device containing far more 1072nm light emitting diodes covering an increased area of skin. These volunteers were asked to use the device every day for approximately 10 minutes to the skin around their eyes. Accurate photographs were taken at the start and the end of the treatment. The results showed that 95% of the volunteers noticed an improvement which could be documented on the before and after photographs. The details of these results are shown elsewhere on the web-site.

In common with many medical discoveries the clinical results of an experimental treatment are found long before a detailed scientific explanation of the process is understood. This is certainly the case with 1072nm light, we cannot explain the effects that are occurring. What we do know is that there is not a universal chromophore (absorbing pigment) within cells mediating a photochemical reaction. The experiments with lymphocytes did identify a chemical change within the cells as the result of 1072nm light irradiation. Our thoughts are that the positive effect of light irradiation is mediated by cell membranes, perhaps by a direct uptake of energy by the electron shell to make the membrane more efficient. Only time and a great deal of experimental work will be able to provide an answer. In the meantime we are hopeful that the discovery of this new therapeutic technology will lead to it being used to treat a variety of diseases.

I hope that you have enjoyed reading this account. I know that it is too technical for a website devoted to what amounts basically to cosmesis but what it should do is to reassure you that this product has been developed upon a background of sound scientific principles and observations and experiments. All you need to do now is try it for yourself!